If you’ve been playing Persona 3 Reload, you may have heard fellow fans chatter about a mysterious item simply known as the Blue Envelope.
Not only is it difficult to even obtain, no one really knows what it does—if it actually does anything at all. Developer Atlus has so far not commented on it, so let’s run through the hard facts surrounding this Blue Envelope and the fan theories surrounding the strange items.
How do you get the Blue Envelope in Persona 3 Reload?
The Blue Envelope is a key item (so it’s not an accessory you can equip or something you can sell for money) you only receive upon beating the main story in Persona 3 Reload on Merciless difficulty.
In case the descriptor didn’t give it away, Merciless is the hardest difficulty option in Persona 3 Reload, designed specifically for those who love extremely tough challenges. I certainly would not recommend Merciless difficulty to new players and while there are thankfully no trophies/achievements or exclusive story content tied to it, Elizabeth won’t gift you the Blue Envelope on any other difficulty. For the record, clearing the main story is enough to unlock the item; you don’t need to beat any of the optional bosses, such as Elizabeth herself.
What does the Blue Envelope do in Persona 3 Reload?
As for what the Blue Envelope does, the answer appears to be… nothing. As X (formerly Twitter) user Faz surmises, Elizabeth only congratulates you for “overcoming great hardship” when she gifts you the envelope, right after the final cutscene. She doesn’t comment on the item at all and it only appears in your inventory once you start a New Game Plus run.
It’s possible simply having it in your inventory can trigger something in New Game Plus, but nobody has corroborated this. It’s probably a simple bragging right, meant to prove you conquered Persona 3 Reload‘s Merciless mode.
The Blue Envelope’s Persona 3 Reload DLC hints
The item does come with an intriguing and cryptic description if you check it in your inventory. It reads: “At the end of a great trial, the answer illuminates my path.” I don’t think it’s too much of a stretch to believe this could be hinting at The Answer.
For context, The Answer is a playable epilogue only ever included with 2008’s Persona 3 FES, an updated re-release of the original game. Despite being a core part of the Persona 3 story that deals with the ramifications of the ending, The Answer is noticeably absent from Persona 3 Reload, much to some fans’ frustration.
That being said, a datamine of the PC version’s files shared by ruinedsteg0 on X on Feb. 3 has sparked assumptions of Persona 3 Reload receiving an expansion pass down the line, which will include The Answer. Atlus hasn’t formally confirmed anything, but the Blue Envelope’s message could be teasing its inclusion.
That’s the safest assumption to be made, but some fans, including th_jeanmain and El chilly, have posited theories that the Blue Envelope’s accompanying message could hint at The Answer featuring an entirely new ending. That seems unlikely though, considering Atlus wanted Persona 3 Reload to be as faithful of a remake as possible. Drastically altering The Answer’s storyline would go against that goal.
We’ll be sure to update this article should any new discoveries about the Blue Envelope crop up or when Atlus announces any Persona 3 Reload The Answer DLC.
